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Description
Sorry for the double post, I had to split the two entry points because the number of links below seems to be limited.

This is a collection of posts concerning working with DAZ3D Studio (in combination with some basic post work) to create and optimize characters. It's not a series of tutorials, rather a collection of concepts, work pipelines and tips and overall rantings on art and stuff. But you can certainly add or ask your tips, questions or details to matters concerned. If you don't use DAZ3D Studio (which is free, but you'll want to buy content at some time), it may give you some idea, whether this suite may be useful to you.

Finally under the comment you'll find a lot of folks from the DAZ and 3D community here which are a really nice (if sometimes weird) crowd, if you're interested in the topic, check out their works (also in my favourites).

Given how cumbersome it can be to find Journal Entries on Deviant Art, I decided to put the recent Creative Process posts under a single entry in the gallery. I can just update this post when I add new entries. I'd still prefer comments to a single journal entry to go there instead of this post, but I'll not have the DeviantArt Gestapo at your throat if you do otherwise.

Parts 6-10

Part 5: Shapes and Shaders, the unstoppable Mlle. de Villefort.

Creative Process Part VCharacter Design and Optimization – The basic character, shaders, face work.

Order of battle(s)
I have come to separate the character creation into several steps. This way I have the least interference between those that distract me from focusing on the task at hand.
    -          Face and hair
    -          Expressions
    -          Body shape
    -          Signature outfit
    -          Poses
    -          Low Resolution Version
A note concerning the use of expressions and poses in this context. There are two pitfalls that I encountered (and I assume at least some of you, too

Part 4: How to create and stage a character with DAZ3D Studio and why does it remind of photoshooting.

Creative Process Part IVCharacter Design and Optimization – Motivation and Preparation.

Motivation
I finally managed to sit down and put some ideas on these topics on the floor. Up front a couple of thoughts and motivations, especially for those who don’t follow me on a regular basis.
First I have to point out (again) that I come from storytelling but also RPGs, so creating characters and their adventures, more often than not on an epic scale are my passions, and while visualizing them is a means to an end for me, I’m ambitious but pragmatic about it. This also means that I fundamentally know about my character and/or scene before the visual representation, and while the latter is an exiting and inspiring effort, it does not take precedence.
Second, on a technical side I do use DAZ3D studio (which is free) for staging and designing the picture, the Iray Render engine to visualize it and finally Photoshop and Topaz Studio for post work. And fo

Part 3: Final choke on the art gristle and how to do a landscape in DAZ3D

Creative Progress, Part IIIIt just occured to me that this may not be obvious on a mobile device, so - scroll down for the technical stuff on how to do landscapes and stuff in DAZ3D...
Lucky for you, I had some time hanging around and coughing my soul out that had me also condensing another one of my rants to something more digestible. So here some thoughts on the last comments. Thanks to everyone for giving their ideas.

I noted some major consent for a certain level of craftsmanship to be a requirement for some product to become art.
I’d agree that pushing or innovating technical skills in their field of art often is a driving motive of great artists. I’d be hard pressed to name a memorable or impressive artist who is not a good or even superb craftsman, either. And as always, don’t trust anyone sagely defining good art. Including me!
But if we draw a line of quality for art, here are some thoughts. The culture we (most of us) live in thrives on a slightly distorted relation trian

Part 2: How do you come up with ideas and some more ramblings about art in general.

Creative Process Part IIand how do you come up with this weird stuff?
I’ll pick up a couple of comments on the previous journal post.
The there is a very definite response from OneOut who stated the art is a matter of skill and training in the first place. I know that there is a much more traditional approach to art and art training in Russia. On the other hand, were I live there is a strong element in art that puts creativity and a certain kind of intertextuality first, up to discouraging artists to acquire skills including traditional realism. I might add that apart from that both in the Western as well as in the Asian world there are professional ‘commercial’ artists today that have mastered an incredible degree at skill and technique (including cheats and hacks) that can outperform and out produce any earlier age. Is their work ‘lifeless’ because it’s commercial? But most sustained and quality art through the time was commercial, since it had to feed the art

Part 1: What's this with 3D 'art' - Ain't the computer doin all that stuff?

Creative Process (Part I)or what is this 3D Art stuff anyway?
Recently two repeating experiences gave me the urge to pester you with some thoughts cluttering up my brain space.
Experience A
For once, even though I do some creative stuff for quite some time (all my life in away), with 3D artwork I have to face a certain annoying reaction (not as much here on DA but in real life). I show some stuff to people I know and the conversations goes like this.
“Here look at this – and that – and yadda yadda…” (Artist enthusiastically showing stuff)
“Wow you did that? I can’t imagine you could do this stuff. Is that… drawn on a computer?” (Since they know I’m kind of a computer person).
“Well its 3D artwork.” (Shows some models and tries to explain)
“Is that a game? Can it move? And the computer does all of it?”
“Uhm… kinda yes and no, you see…” (Tries to explain some more)
Other person starts to look glass-

DAZ3D Studio and Logo is obviously owned by DAZ Productions, Inc.

I'll post the previous pictures of Inez and Myriam seperately, since there seems to be a thumbnail limit ... dA... jeez...

Description
Sorry for the double post, I had to split the two entry points because the number of links below seems to be limited.

This is a collection of posts concerning working with DAZ3D Studio (in combination with some basic post work) to create and optimize characters. It's not a series of tutorials, rather a collection of concepts, work pipelines and tips and overall rantings on art and stuff. But you can certainly add or ask your tips, questions or details to matters concerned. If you don't use DAZ3D Studio (which is free, but you'll want to buy content at some time), it may give you some idea, whether this suite may be useful to you.

Finally under the comment you'll find a lot of folks from the DAZ and 3D community here which are a really nice (if sometimes weird) crowd, if you're interested in the topic, check out their works (also in my favourites).

Given how cumbersome it can be to find Journal Entries on Deviant Art, I decided to put the recent Creative Process posts under a single entry in the gallery. I can just update this post when I add new entries. I'd still prefer comments to a single journal entry to go there instead of this post, but I'll not have the DeviantArt Gestapo at your throat if you do otherwise.

Parts 6-10

Part 5: Shapes and Shaders, the unstoppable Mlle. de Villefort.

Creative Process Part VCharacter Design and Optimization – The basic character, shaders, face work.

Order of battle(s)
I have come to separate the character creation into several steps. This way I have the least interference between those that distract me from focusing on the task at hand.
    -          Face and hair
    -          Expressions
    -          Body shape
    -          Signature outfit
    -          Poses
    -          Low Resolution Version
A note concerning the use of expressions and poses in this context. There are two pitfalls that I encountered (and I assume at least some of you, too

Part 4: How to create and stage a character with DAZ3D Studio and why does it remind of photoshooting.

Creative Process Part IVCharacter Design and Optimization – Motivation and Preparation.

Motivation
I finally managed to sit down and put some ideas on these topics on the floor. Up front a couple of thoughts and motivations, especially for those who don’t follow me on a regular basis.
First I have to point out (again) that I come from storytelling but also RPGs, so creating characters and their adventures, more often than not on an epic scale are my passions, and while visualizing them is a means to an end for me, I’m ambitious but pragmatic about it. This also means that I fundamentally know about my character and/or scene before the visual representation, and while the latter is an exiting and inspiring effort, it does not take precedence.
Second, on a technical side I do use DAZ3D studio (which is free) for staging and designing the picture, the Iray Render engine to visualize it and finally Photoshop and Topaz Studio for post work. And fo

Part 3: Final choke on the art gristle and how to do a landscape in DAZ3D

Creative Progress, Part IIIIt just occured to me that this may not be obvious on a mobile device, so - scroll down for the technical stuff on how to do landscapes and stuff in DAZ3D...
Lucky for you, I had some time hanging around and coughing my soul out that had me also condensing another one of my rants to something more digestible. So here some thoughts on the last comments. Thanks to everyone for giving their ideas.

I noted some major consent for a certain level of craftsmanship to be a requirement for some product to become art.
I’d agree that pushing or innovating technical skills in their field of art often is a driving motive of great artists. I’d be hard pressed to name a memorable or impressive artist who is not a good or even superb craftsman, either. And as always, don’t trust anyone sagely defining good art. Including me!
But if we draw a line of quality for art, here are some thoughts. The culture we (most of us) live in thrives on a slightly distorted relation trian

Part 2: How do you come up with ideas and some more ramblings about art in general.

Creative Process Part IIand how do you come up with this weird stuff?
I’ll pick up a couple of comments on the previous journal post.
The there is a very definite response from OneOut who stated the art is a matter of skill and training in the first place. I know that there is a much more traditional approach to art and art training in Russia. On the other hand, were I live there is a strong element in art that puts creativity and a certain kind of intertextuality first, up to discouraging artists to acquire skills including traditional realism. I might add that apart from that both in the Western as well as in the Asian world there are professional ‘commercial’ artists today that have mastered an incredible degree at skill and technique (including cheats and hacks) that can outperform and out produce any earlier age. Is their work ‘lifeless’ because it’s commercial? But most sustained and quality art through the time was commercial, since it had to feed the art

Part 1: What's this with 3D 'art' - Ain't the computer doin all that stuff?

Creative Process (Part I)or what is this 3D Art stuff anyway?
Recently two repeating experiences gave me the urge to pester you with some thoughts cluttering up my brain space.
Experience A
For once, even though I do some creative stuff for quite some time (all my life in away), with 3D artwork I have to face a certain annoying reaction (not as much here on DA but in real life). I show some stuff to people I know and the conversations goes like this.
“Here look at this – and that – and yadda yadda…” (Artist enthusiastically showing stuff)
“Wow you did that? I can’t imagine you could do this stuff. Is that… drawn on a computer?” (Since they know I’m kind of a computer person).
“Well its 3D artwork.” (Shows some models and tries to explain)
“Is that a game? Can it move? And the computer does all of it?”
“Uhm… kinda yes and no, you see…” (Tries to explain some more)
Other person starts to look glass-

DAZ3D Studio and Logo is obviously owned by DAZ Productions, Inc.

I'll post the previous pictures of Inez and Myriam seperately, since there seems to be a thumbnail limit ... dA... jeez...